Oregon City School's web site lets parents pay lunch bills online

Oregon City School's redesigned Web site will allow parents to pay for their children's lunches online next school year, one feature that was most requested by users in a survey.

And users of the district's Web site will be able to access their No. 1 request - online grades - in the 2010-2011 school year after the district trains staff to use a new student management system.

The district's redesigned Web site launched last month at a new address, oregoncityschools.org. The project has been in the works for more than a year, and many ideas and concerns addressed in the survey done in October were incorporated into the redesign, said Jeffrey Ziviski, president of the Oregon school board.

"The Web site is a true representation of ideas from everyone in the community," Mr. Ziviski said.

The district is negotiating with banks so it can offer parents online payment lunch accounts at a low fee next school year, said Nathan Quigg, district technology director.

Parents will be able to create one account for all of their children, Mr. Quigg said. They will use a credit card to add funds and get e-mail notification if the account has less than $10, he said.

For now, Mr. Quigg said, the redesigned Web site has improved navigation and many added features. The Web site has a "parents" link, for example, to provide easy access to frequently used information, Mr. Quigg said.

The main page also has a searchable district directory with e-mail addresses and telephone numbers, and the site has a feature to search for forms, calendars, and other documents, Mr. Quigg said.

Plus, users can register for text messages, e-mail alerts, or RSS feeds, including school delays and closings, from any of the district's Web calendars.

The board's section was expanded to include audio recordings of meetings, treasurer's office information, meeting dates, agendas, and minutes. There also is an online employment application system.

Personnel in each school were trained to update their building's portion of the Web site, enabling each to provide timely information to parents, students, and community members, Mr. Quigg said.

"Our goal is to share as much information about our district as we can," he said.